The rest of night was sort of a blur. Probably because I was half asleep most of the time, suprising seeing as I spent apparently four hours unconcious. The nightmare must have drained me. The others too. I do remember vaguely Nadine and Tori challenging each other's wit with a very harsh snapping competition and Elleanora talking to Becca, trying to play guess the suspect's emotions. Derek, well Derek was kind of out of it too. He just kept petting my hair, which was weird but I felt so strange, Kind of like I had just shot a bit of heroine in my arm. High and crazy. But also really tired. Really really tired. In the morning, I felt better than ever though I was kind of itchy. I scratched at my arms, my eyes still closed, not ready to open quite yet. It only made the itch worse. Then the places where I scratched started burning and my eyes shot open. My eyes snapped quickly to my arms, only to see large dark maroon spots all over them. They couldn't have been chicken pocks because they were too big and they looked more like bruises. The burning kept getting worse even as I forced myself to stop itching. I sat up swiftly, feeling my stomach start to itch as well. I scratched like there was no tomorrow, my self control was completely gone. I just had to scratch it. Then the burning started there. The same thing started happening all over until finally my whole body felt like it was on fire. I whimpered a little, trying to contain the tears that were threating to fall. The burning got worse and it was starting to blind me. My vision was over shadowed with red and with it, an unusual feeling of liquid swimming around in them. I let out a huge ear piercing scream. It hurt so bad. The burning, and now my eyes were seering with pain as if poisoned. I heard rustling around me and voices but I couldn't see a thing. I just kept screaming. Even over my own scream, I heard another one coming from my left.

"Oh my God, Violet!" There was a shout from beside me on my right. It was Derek's voice, though it was hard to tell over the unstoppable screams pouring from my mouth.

"What the hell is wrong with her?!" It was Nadine's voice this time, and it was pissed.

"She's been bitten" Tori said and I could hear the seriousness in her voice.

"What do you mean she's been bitten?!" Nadine exclaimed.

"There's a beetle that lives in some of the trees in this area. It has a venom that sends you straight into a lapse of what hell would be like, more or less. It's fatil if not treated within the first week of it's affects" Tori said, sounding kind of as if something was bothering her.

"No wait, don't touch her!" Becca shouted. I felt someone grab my hand and at first the coolness of it was soothing. It had to have been Elleanora. Though after a couple of seconds, the hand she held burnt worse than all of the rest of me put together. I snatched my hand away fast and I screamed loudly, thick tears rolling down my face. Unusually thick, and not really watery.

"The healers back at our vixen camp can treat her but we have to move quickly if we're going to get there in time. It's a three day journey if we move fast enough but if there is one destraction, the trip will lengthen emensely" Becca said. Right as she finished the last word of her sentense, two strong arms wrapped around me and craddled me. It was Derek obviously since last time I checked, the others didn't have biceps. I was grateful that he avoided the places where my skin was exposed so as to not direct any pain into one spot again like last time. That was painful. Still, the fire was blazing inside me and it was as if my organs were frying. I swallowed back another scream.

"Lead us there" Derek said, his voice coated in shielded worry. Nothing more was said that I could hear but I did notice that we were now moving again. I was glad I didn't have to walk. I don't think I could have if I wanted to. The agony was so paralyzing and the fire made me week. We were walking in silence for I don't know how long, but even as time passed, I couldn't seem to get used to the pain. It hurt just as much as when it first started but yet much worse. All I could really hope for was that at any moment I would pass out so I wouldn't have to endure the burning. Sweat was soaking my hair and my lower lip was bleeding from my biting.

"I knew it would be dangerous. Just, why did it have to be her?" I heard a whisper coming from Derek. I didn't know if he was talking to himself or what but I pretended to be asleep so that he would continue. It turns out he was talking to Elleanora whom replied,

"It could have been any one of us. Violet's a strong girl, she knew what she was getting into." I held back a smile that would have probably looked like a grimace anyway because of course the pain was still there. At least someone believed in me.

"She doesn't deserve this though" Derek said, and I felt his gaze on me but I saw nothing. Even if my eyes had been open, I wouldn't have been able to.

"You know she's doing this because she wants too. She's willing to risk everything to be with Jordan. You know, her boyfriend" She replied in a skeptical voice and though I wouldn't have been so judgy about it, I was glad she told him before I had to. He was a nice guy, really and any girl would be insanely lucky to have him. I was sure we would be really good friends but that's all.

"I know" Derek whispered, almost too softly for me to hear. I could hear pain in his voice and it only added to mine. We walked on for awhile. Time was still undefinable as ever. Finally after a lot of time had pass, Derek's steps slowed to a stop. There was a lot of rustling around me and we stayed in that spot for quite a chunk of time. Then suddenly, he started lowering me to the ground. I cringed a little, expecting the rough ground to intensify the burning at first touch to my skin. Suprised, I was when something soft and soothing brushed my skin beneath me. It eased the pain a little and I was desperate so much as to roll around, trying to get as much of skin as I could touching whatever it was.

"Elk skin, the only defensive thing against venom caused curses" I heard Tori say. I jumped a little, groaning painfully at the sting, when I realized she was sitting right beside me. What was most shoking was the sense that she was the only one around.

"Where is everybody?" I asked, speaking for the first time that day. I gasped at how choked and raspy my voice came out. Like it wasn't even close to sounding like mine.

"They're out hunting for food. Someone had to watch over you and since I'm most familiar with the symptoms, I was the best candidate. Here, don't struggle so much. There's plenty more" She said, her voice warmer than it had been since I met her. Then suddenly, I felt some more soothing elk skin, covering me. It felt so good that the pain was just past bareable. I tucked it in around me, jamed tight so it could touch every part of available skin. Truthfully, I was tempted to strip down but I was too afraid of Derek coming back and opening up a whole other can of sick worms.

"Feels good huh?" Tori asked and I could hear the smile.when she said it. I just smiled a little, or at least I hope it turned out being a smile. It was quite a comfortable silence for a moment but I kind of wanted to talk before I fell asleep. The whole day was full of silence and I'd rather it didn't end with it.

"So what's your story?" I asked.

"It's nothing I really care to dwell on. I ran away, got lost and got bitten just like you. And then when I was just on the brink of death, a vixen tribe found me and lucky enough, they had a healer along who knew how to make the cure from natural ingredients. I've been traveling with them mostly since then. That's where I met Becca and" Tori paused, and then for a split second, I felt something cool and circular in my hand. It was small and after that first second, it was imediately gone before any pain could start.

"That's a ring right?" I asked, judging purely by the feel.

"Yeah, Elvin made silver with a clean cut saphire and small embroided vines twirling around it" She said, admiringly. My jaw dropped a little.

"You're married?!" I exclaimed. She laughed a little.

"Not yet, it's still another nine months from now" she said joyfully.

"Wow, who's the groom?" I asked. "Eiden, an ex elf, made the ring himself. Actually he's the one who cured me. Hmm..." Tori said thoughtfully as if she had never really thought about it before right now.

"I'm happy for you" I said sincerely.

"Thanks, I'll introduce you when we get there if you like" She said and the sides of my mouth curved up slightly. I was about to say something but when I opened my mouth to speak, I felt the burning build up in my throat. My body reacted by trying to cough whatever was in there out. It only made the pain worse. I was choking now and my eyes were starting to water. Then I felt a quick chop on my back and a big stream of something shot out of my mouth, leaving my throat itchy from the burning. Blood. That's what it had tasted like, and then I realized that that was exactly what had been leaking from my eyes as well. I fell back to the ground and started breathing slowly, trying to calm down.

"Yeah if I make it that long." Was the last thing I did before I blacked out completely.